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Navgire stars with 69 as Velocity’s score of 174 was enough to secure them a berth in the final

Sreshth Shah26-May-2022 to chase 191, all they had to do was not lose by 32 (or more) runs.Related

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At the halfway stage, a chase of 191 seemed daunting and it appeared that the prudent strategy for Velocity would be to approach the game like a 159 chase. However, Yastika Bhatia and Shafali Verma smacked 36 in four overs and Kiran Navgire, batting in her first innings of the competition, hammered 69 in 34 balls to show that they were playing like it was 191 that they needed. Eventually, they lost steam and fell 16 runs short, but not before threatening to break the highest total record for most of the chase.A chase to rememberThe chase began with Shafali being joined with a new partner for Velocity’s second game. Bhatia was promoted to open, and together they made use of the field restrictions to lift the run rate to nine in the first four overs. But Bhatia fell for 19 to Salma Khatun’s offspin around the stumps after being bowled while trying to slog.Shafali, who had started aggressively with five fours in her first 14 balls, then fell for 29 for Velocity to lose both set openers in quick succession. But while the 18-year-old was around, she entertained with her cuts and inside-out punch shots through the off side.When Laura Wolvaardt walked in at No. 4, she and No. 3 Navgire were both on 0, and the score read 50 for 2. With two new batters in the middle, Trailblazers’ target of restricting Velocity to inside 158 seemed like a reality again. But the very next ball began a deflating process that would eventually last till the final ball.Kiran Navgire smashed a 25-ball half-century•BCCI

That’s because Navgire, facing her first ball of the competition, and facing the experienced Khatun, started off with a slog-swept six over deep midwicket right away. She then punched the Bangladesh spinner through cover and followed it up with another six over the leg side to start with 17 in her first five balls.The onslaught would continue till the 17th over, with a final tally of five fours and five sixes from Navgire’s bat. The Dhoni fan who hit 54 fours and 35 sixes in her debut T20 season for Nagaland in the Senior Women’s T20 Trophy showed why she is considered the new big thing in Indian white-ball cricket by dominating through the middle overs. By the time her two sixes ended the 14th over, Velocity needed only 20 more runs to go past 158, and as the time out was called, the Trailblazers shoulders had dropped.Navgire eventually fell for a 34-ball 69 in the 17th over, but not before she set the record for the fastest fifty (25 balls) in the competition’s history. With two tidy overs from Sophia Dunkley and Renuka Singh pushing the required run rate for the match target of 191 to over 10, Navgire looked to find the boundary for the 11th time, but was out stumped by Dunkley.As she walked back to a standing applause from the dugout and her home state crowd in Pune, Velocity needed only five to reach 159 and with 20 balls to spare, the result that decided the finalists was in the touching distance even though the match target of 191 appeared to get out of reach.Velocity eventually secured finals qualification in the 19th over with debutant Simran Bahadur hitting the ‘qualifying’ runs – a paddle four to fine leg – off Hayley Matthews. That ensured the defending champions would be knocked out, even if they did sign off with a 16-run win.Trailblazers push the limitsKnowing that they had to post a total that was big enough to keep that 32-run buffer for the bowlers, Smriti Mandhana’s Trailblazers started off aggressively even though the captain herself fell for 1.Sabbhineni Meghana – making her debut for the season – muscled 73 runs in 47 balls, and Jemimah Rodrigues clubbed 66 in 44 balls to lead the way in setting the competition’s highest score. The duo got together in the third over, and eventually put on 113 runs together in 73 balls for a second-wicket stand that kept the run-rate hovering around 8.50 through the innings.Meghana, in particular, enjoyed scoring over the bowler’s head to full balls in the opening salvo with the new ball and grew into playing the square shots as the innings progressed. Rodrigues was more innovative, walking across the crease to find the boundaries behind square on either side.Meghana reached her fifty in 32 deliveries but did enjoy some luck in her innings. She was dropped by Sneh Rana and Ayabonga Khaka through her stay, and was eventually out in the 15th over to Kate Cross.Rodrigues, who reached her fifty in 36 balls, then accelerated in Matthews’ company to eventually finish with a strike rate of 150. Matthews and Dunkley then added a brisk 32 in the death overs to set an impressive target. It wasn’t enough though, as Trailblazers paid the price for a big defeat in the opening game.

The England camp have admitted that James Anderson had been warned twice for running on the pitch before he was removed from the attack

George Dobell at the Wanderers15-Jan-2016The England camp have admitted that James Anderson had been warned twice for running on the pitch before he was removed from the attack for a third transgression in the third Test against South Africa in Johannesburg.Anderson, England’s record wicket taker in Test cricket, appeared incensed when Aleem Dar, the umpire, notified the England captain that Anderson was to be withdrawn from the attack after two balls of the 100th over of the innings.In an angry exchange that continued beyond the end of innings, Anderson appeared to insist that he had been warned only once previously.But an ECB spokesman later confirmed that Alastair Cook, the England captain, admitted he had been warned twice previously about Anderson running on to the protected area. The first warning came after three deliveries of the 61st over of the innings; the second after four deliveries of the 94th over. All the warnings were captured by broadcasters.Law 42.12 – a section headlined ‘bowler running on protected area after delivering the ball – states that, on the first instance of any infringement, the umpire shall “caution the bowler and inform the other umpire.” They should also “inform the captain of the fielding side and the batsmen.”If the bowler contravenes again, the umpire is obliged to “repeat the procedure indicating that it is a final warning.”Aleem Dar, who his officiating in his 101st Test as an on-field umpire, won the ICC’s umpire of the year award for three years in a row (between 2009 and 2011).While the England camp have suggested that the umpires could, perhaps, make their warnings a little more obvious, they have effectively accepted the sanction. Coming, as it did, with nine wickets down, and with Ben Stokes requiring only one delivery to finish off the innings, it did not adversely affect them. Anderson, whose querying of the decision probably stayed just the right side of the line separated between ‘inquisitive’ and ‘argumentative’ is unlikely to face further punishment.There may be concern, however, at Anderson’s habit of running on the pitch – a habit that appears to be of increasing interest to umpires – and his apparent fury with the world and almost all upon it once he takes to the pitch. It is understood a team-mate recently made it clear in the dressing room that some were tiring of the latter.There has been illness within the England squad in recent days and it may well be that Anderson – and Stuart Broad, who bowled far below his recent high standards here – have suffered as much as anyone and deserve some patience. No doubt Anderson’s anger stems from his burning desire to perform for the team that he has represented with pride for more than a decade. He has more than earned the benefit of any doubt.As a new England side emerges, though – an England side keen to engage with its supporters and in the first flush of enthusiasm for international cricket and all it entails – Anderson’s anger jars and appears oddly out of step.

England are coming off victory in Pakistan while the home side have rested key bowlers

Andrew McGlashan08-Oct-2022

Big picture

Day by day, match by match, we are getting closer to the real thing. Neither Australia nor England have been short on T20Is of late and now they face each other for three more, beginning in Perth before two more back across the country in Canberra.The sides have been doing a fair amount of tinkering with their teams in recent games, but it has been as much to do with workload management as anything. Barring late-injury dramas, it still feels they are close to knowing their World Cup XIs – England perhaps have two spots up for most debate and for Australia, provided Mitchell Marsh and Marcus Stoinis can bowl, it still appears just the final batting place to resolve.While there is nothing hugely significant riding on this series – the main thing will be certain players finding form and others avoiding injury – it has the makings of a very good contest. Australia found their groove in the second outing against West Indies while England played some excellent cricket in Pakistan to take the series 4-3 with wins in the last two games.Related

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The short nature of this trip to Perth, which is not an ideal schedule for the home side, and was not the original fixture until this game was moved west after the venue lost its ODI against South Africa, means Australia will field a fresh frontline attack from Friday in Brisbane with only Cameron Green of the five bowlers used with the squad.For Green, provided he is in the XI, this will be his first international on his home ground with Perth having not staged international cricket since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic. If Marsh, Stoinis and Ashton Agar play, Western Australia will be well represented. Josh Inglis is also in the squad along with former WA player Tim David.Depending how England manage their fast bowlers, there is the enticing prospect of seeing Mark Wood operate on a Perth pitch after he sent down some thunderbolts in Pakistan.

Recent form

Australia WWLLW (last five completed T20Is, most recent first)
England WWLLWMitchell Marsh will hope to make an impact on his home ground•Getty Images

In the spotlight

Ben Stokes is now a two-format player having retired from ODIs earlier this year, but he hasn’t played a T20I since March 2021 against India. Rightly or wrongly, his career in the format is still most-remembered for being taken for four sixes by Carlos Brathwaite in the final over of the 2016 T20 World Cup final. He has never quite found his perfect role in the England side, with a top score of 47 not out in 28 innings and 19 wickets with an economy of 8.77. There is a squeeze of highly-destructive hitters in England’s middle order, so it’s a rare occasion of the pressure being on Stokes to prove he should be among them.This is a big week for Marcus Stoinis. He has struggled to stay on the park in recent months and his side injuries are frequent enough to be something of a concern. But he had a significant part to play in Australia’s World Cup triumph last season and he is important in balancing the side, although his bowling is not of Green’s quality. He has every right to be in the World Cup XI, but he’ll want to make this series count.

Team news

Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood, Adam Zampa and Glenn Maxwell have all stayed on the east coast and will rejoin the squad in Canberra, so there will be four new bowling options. It would make sense to give Kane Richardson and Agar a game after their recent side issues as they are in the World Cup squad, but it could also be another opportunity for Nathan Ellis to impress. Steven Smith is likely to be forced out of the XI as Australia may continue to tinker with their batting order.Australia (probable) 1 David Warner, 2 Cameron Green, 3 Mitchell Marsh, 4 Aaron Finch (capt), 5 Marcus Stoinis, 6 Tim David, 7 Matthew Wade (wk), 8 Daniel Sams, 9 Ashton Agar, 10 Nathan Ellis, 11 Kane RichardsonLiam Livingstone is not available for selection as he continues to recover from an ankle injury while Chris Jordan may be held back for the Canberra games. Captain Jos Buttler will return at the top of the order, which leaves the major selection call between Alex Hales and Phil Salt to partner himEngland (probable) 1 Jos Buttler (capt & wk), 2 Alex Hales/Phil Salt, 3 Dawid Malan, 4 Ben Stokes, 5 Harry Brook, 6 Moeen Ali, 7 Sam Curran, 8 Chris Woakes, 9 Adil Rashid, 10 Mark Wood, 11 Reece Topley

Pitch and conditions

There hasn’t been much cricket at this ground over the last couple of years – just a handful of BBL and WBBL matches – but it’s normally a good pitch that offers pace for bowlers and batters to work with, although it is still early in the season. The forecast is, by Perth standards, on the milder side with just a very slim chance of a shower.

Stats and trivia

• England featured in the first international at Perth Stadium, an ODI in 2018 which they won by 12 runs
• In the one previous T20I at the venue, Australia cantered home by ten wickets against Pakistan in 2019
• Aaron Finch needs 12 runs to become the first Australia men’s player to reach 3000 T20I runs. Smith needs three runs and Matthew Wade 28 for 1000 in the format.

Quotes

“Adapting to conditions quickly is going to be a key factor for us to get up and running. It’s all about peaking at the right time for this World Cup.”
“Don’t leave any energy in the tank. Give it our best shot. We are here on home soil. We want to entertain and we want to take it deep. We have to start well against New Zealand.”

Attack leader says England are aiming to replicate the one facet of the 2012 series that did go well for them

Andrew McGlashan in Abu Dhabi11-Oct-2015On one hand, England hope history does not repeat itself against Pakistan in the UAE. On the other, they are aiming to replicate the one facet of the 2012 series that did go well for them.England’s bowling was not the problem during their 3-0 defeat on the previous visit. In the second and third Tests James Anderson, Stuart Broad, Graeme Swann and Monty Panesar combined impressively and looked to have sealed each match in turn. In Abu Dhabi, a chase of 145 was botched spectacularly as England collapsed to 72 all out, then in Dubai England removed Pakistan for 99 in the first innings, only to be thwarted by Azhar Ali and Younis Khan second-time around.Anderson and Broad are among the five surviving players from that tour to make it here again (Cook, Bell and Finn the others) with Anderson set to return as the father-figure of England’s pace attack having missed the final two Ashes Tests due to a side injury. He and Broad shared 22 wickets during the 2012 series and will be delving into their banks of experience over the next few weeks to help an attack that remains raw.”When conditions are this alien to a lot of the younger guys it’s important we try and give them as much information as possible so they can prepare themselves. Passing on advice is crucial,” Anderson said”Last time we were here we had a decent amount of success, myself and Stuart and the two spinners, so we know how to get 20 wickets out here. We know we’ll have to bowl very well to do that. It’s an exciting challenge; the conditions, the heat, if we do perform well it will be very satisfying.”James Anderson bowls in the nets ahead of the first Test•Getty Images

Anderson will resume his Test career on 413 wickets – in a neat twist, given the opposition as well as the Lancashire connection, one wicket will bring him level with Wasim Akram at joint 10th on the all-time list. His preparation has been limited – 12 overs and one wicket, with a catch down the leg side – but he is not alone in that and at least ended the season playing county cricket.There has been the notion floated that, in a horses-for-courses selection, similar to that justifying Moeen Ali opening, Anderson’s place could be under threat as his greatest strengths are likely to be diminished in the prevailing conditions where traditional swing is a rare sight.At 33, his days as the leader of the attack are numbered but you don’t easily shelve 400-plus Test wickets. Even if there is just a modicum of swing for a short period Anderson should still be better than most at finding it.”I’m itching to get going again,” he said. “It was frustrating to miss the last couple of Test of the summer but I’ve played a bit for Lancashire which was good, got some wickets, so felt in good in form and since being out here all of us have acclimatised quite quickly and are raring to go.”Despite the acclimatisation, conditions will remain very tough for England and Anderson knows it is vital, especially for the quicks, that they make every over count. In such searing heat, spells will rarely exceed five overs so they will need to assess very swiftly what tactics should be employed.”We saw Steven Finn bowl seven [in the warm-up], that’s probably pushing it a little bit, but we are aware we’ll have to be used in short spells,” Anderson said. “Me and Broady have brought it up with the lads already, when we came out here last time we bowled four-five overs maximum which means you have to be on the money from ball one and that puts a bit of emphasis on you as a bowler – you can’t just ease into a spell. You have to nail it.”You’ve got to assess the situation very quickly, if the ball isn’t swinging you have to go to Plan B,” he added. “You have to quickly assess if it will reverse-swing, while cutters and little changes in pace are crucial as well. It’s about finding the right skills for the situation, the pace of the pitch is important, whether you bring the slips out and things like that. It’s about being sharp and aware.”Anderson acknowledged that success in this series would rank alongside the away wins in the Ashes in 2010-11 and India in 2012-13, but insisted that the team – in the spirit that carried them through the home season – are not overawed by what is in front of them.”We put a lot of pressure on ourselves,” he said. “We want to improve on the performances from the summer. We know we can play better than we did even though we won that series, we want to continue to improve and show people how exciting we can be.”We are aware of how we performed last time we were here. As we saw in the Ashes, we lost them in 2013 but then won them back, so it’s all about how you prepare and play in that particular series. What happened in the past doesn’t really matter that much.”Except, of course, if you are remembering how to take wickets.

Former Pakistan cricketers Wasim Akram and Shoaib Akhtar, who are in India as part of ‘ commentary team for the India-South Africa series, will return home before the fifth ODI in Mumbai

ESPNcricinfo staff19-Oct-2015Former Pakistan cricketers Wasim Akram and Shoaib Akhtar, who are in India as part of ‘ commentary team for the India-South Africa series, will return home before the fifth ODI in Mumbai. The early departure is a security precaution, following Monday’s anti-Pakistan protests by the Shiv Sena, a regional political party, who stormed into the BCCI headquarters in Mumbai ahead of a scheduled meeting between BCCI and PCB officials.Akram’s agent Arsalan Haider confirmed that the pair would commentate on the fourth ODI in Chennai and return on October 23, two days before the Mumbai ODI.The news broke soon after the ICC withdrew Aleem Dar, the Pakistani umpire, from the last two ODIs. An ICC release cited “Monday’s incident in Mumbai where a group of extremists stormed into the BCCI office” as the reason for its decision.On Monday morning, a short while before BCCI president Shashank Manohar and PCB chairman Shaharyar Khan were to discuss a proposed India-Pakistan series in December, a group of 50 workers from the Shiv Sena stormed into the BCCI headquarters in Mumbai, shouting anti-Pakistan slogans and demanding the cancellation of the series.Dar, who is a member of the elite panel of ICC umpires, had officiated in the first three ODIs, and was also scheduled to umpire in the fourth and fifth ODIs, in Chennai and Mumbai. However, the Shiv Sena threatened to stop Dar from officiating in the Mumbai ODI, forcing the ICC’s hand.”Under the present circumstances, it will be unreasonable to expect from Aleem that he will be able to perform his duties to the best of his abilities,” an ICC spokesperson said.Shortly after the protests, Anurag Thakur, the BCCI secretary, was asked about the incident, and whether the board could guarantee Dar’s safety.”There was a possibility of a protest in Saurashtra too where more than 50000 spectators attended. What is the threat and what is the perception, I can’t get into it,” Thakur said. “India has to host the World Twenty20 in 2016 so it is the responsibility of every Indian to maintain the image that we have of appreciating and enjoying performances of even the opponents. Political issues should be kept aside.”The ICC on Tuesday said in a release that umpire S Ravi would stand in place of Dar for the fourth ODI in Chennai in “exceptional circumstances” as it would lead to two Indian umpires on the field, after BCCI and CSA agreed to it. Ravi was initially supposed to officiate for the ongoing Test series between Pakistan and England in the UAE. The ICC did not name Dar’s replacement for the fifth and final ODI in Mumbai.*1620GMT: The story was amended to include news of Wasim Akram and Shoaib Akhtar’s early departures

Surrey have now lost three Blast matches in four and are flagging at the wrong time

David Hopps03-Jul-2022Will Smeed is still awaiting his first T20 hundred, but he is wasting no time in ticking off the 90s one by one. After treating a capacity Taunton crowd to another typically bullish innings, he now has a 98 to his name to add to a 99 and 97 for Quetta Gladiators and a 94 earlier this season in the Vitality Blast against Glamorgan. All of them made since the turn of the year.Smeed and his captain Tom Abell, in delightfully contrasting styles, ensured that Somerset joined Surrey in securing a home quarter-final in the Blast next week with a 48-run defeat of the Brown Caps at Taunton. Surrey, unbeaten in all formats for the first stage of the season, have now lost three Blast matches in four and are flagging at the wrong time.It took 73 from 35 balls from their captain, Chris Jordan, to keep up appearances. Somerset, by contrast, are in form. But both will take some beating and Derbyshire and Yorkshire will head south with trepidation. Surrey play Yorkshire on Wednesday whilst Somerset must wait until Saturday before facing Derbyshire.Somerset’s third-wicket stand of 165 in 70 balls between Smeed and Abell was a delight for any West Country loyalist on a perfect night when the sun flooded onto the Quantocks and the crowd was awash with smiles. On nights like this, with the ball flying to all parts, there is no happier place in T20, perhaps no happier place in cricket, perhaps (for cricket fans of a certain disposition) no happier place in the world.In the hands of Smeed and Abell, joy was unconfined. Smeed, at 20 is already a hulking presence. He sits on the back foot with an uncomplicated intention to wreak havoc, and included 10 fours and five sixes in his 51-ball assault. But his game is broadening, as it should, and there were a couple of rasping square cuts in his repertoire to keep bowlers thinking.There may be better batters in the Blast – more dynamic, more destructive – than Abell. He has never played for England so that suggests as much. If England are looking at anybody, especially in their current mood, it is likely to be Smeed. But for the sheer delight of an educated batter at the height of a 360-degree game, choosing the best option and executing it brilliantly, there are few better sights in the domestic T20 game. Smeed is a potential colossus, and doubtless lifts sales of teenage-friendly dumb bells, but Abell is fast becoming one of the most respected players in Somerset history.At 194 for 3 with 21 balls remaining, they should have made 230. They had to settle for 218 for 8 as Surrey summoned a response once Abell’s slog sweep against Reece Topley had been brilliantly caught over his head by Gus Atkinson, running back towards long leg. Abell injured himself batting and did not field. Smeed was undone by a slower ball from Topley which he hauled to deep square. The thought of a couple of quiet singles for his maiden hundred does not seem to enter his mind and, in a format where no ball should be wasted, he is all the more impressive for that.Related

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As an enticing sub-plot, attention also focused upon on Overton v Overton 2. Jamie returned to Taunton last month following his move to Somerset and felled Craig Overton and Josh Davey in successive overs with wicked bouncers.This time, he introduced himself with a 60-metre throw from deep square after Tom Banton risked a second. Banton spent a lot of time calculating the odds as he assessed Overton’s progress towards the ball while he ran the first, but did not quite compute one of the strongest arms in the game pulling off a direct hit.Craig demanded even more attention when it came to his turn as he had three Surrey wickets to his name in his first seven deliveries. Will Jacks attempted a pull on the charge and was caught second ball; Tom Curran, again trying the pull, this time without the charge, added a second-ball duck of his own; by way of contrast, Jamie Smith pushed at one and was caught at first slip.Jordan and Laurie Evans then rescued that in an untroubled stand of 82 in 46 balls. Evans had fluffed a couple of chances in the field, including Smeed on 76 at deep square, to the derision of a section of the crowd, and was bent upon revenge, but his 39 ended with an excellent diving catch by Ben Green at long off. Jordan struck 23 off an over from Lewis Gregory, who was standing in as captain for Abell in the field, and he was to carry his resistance into the 17th over, particularly impressive over long off and extra cover, until Peter Siddle shrewdly plugged extra especially for him and the sub, George Bartlett, held a good catch.But the crowd wanted to see: COverton vs JOverton, sibling rivalry write large, and they were not disappointed. With his penultimate delivery, Craig had Jamie caught at the wicket, cross-batting, and set off on a sprint of celebration. “I owed him after being hit on the head a couple of weeks back so it was nice to get one back,” he said.Perhaps only Surrey among the 18 professional counties can potentially act as if money is no option and Aaron Hardie, the Australia A and Western Australia allrounder, has been called for the end of the group stages (with qualification already assured) as well as the last-eight tie.Hardie has just finished the Australia A tour of Sri Lanka where he scored 226 runs at an average of 75, was part of the Perth Scorchers’ Big Bash-winning squad and starred in this year’s Sheffield Shield final, guiding Western Australia to victory with an unbeaten 174 as well as taking three wickets opening the bowling. He has yet to fire for Surrey – one wicket and 26 runs in two knocks, Roelof van der Merwe bowling him on this occasion – but he is acclimatised for the quarter-finals and is dangerous.

England come unstuck in stiff chase as opponents make up for lapses in series opener

Vithushan Ehantharajah28-Jul-2022South Africa unfurled a near-perfect short-form display to beat England by 58 runs in Cardiff, squaring the T20I series ahead of Sunday’s decider at the Ageas Bowl.Just 24 hours after defeat by 41 runs in Bristol on Wednesday evening, it was a redemptive performance from the Proteas to draw level at 1-1. Rilee Rossouw’s 96 not out spearheaded a total of 207 for three, before Tabraiz Shamsi (three for 27) and Andile Phehlukwayo (three for 39) successfully defended their score by skittling their opponents with 20 balls to spare.Jos Buttler said he wanted to see how his team went chasing after winning a first toss in eight and opting to bowl first, and the Proteas were more than happy to oblige. A brisk start – 32 for none after three overs, then 58 for the loss of Quinton de Kock at the end of the powerplay – was maintained throughout.Rossouw was the main event, but Reeza Hendricks provided the perfect warm-up act, backing up Bristol’s half-century with another here, before eventually falling for 53. That ended a stand of 73 between himself and Rossouw, who had 39 at this point, with 8.3 overs to go. With Tristan Stubbs struggling to replicate the hitting from his six-heavy 72 from 28 deliveries, 57 of the remaining 95 runs came from the senior man.England were poor in the field, with wayward lines and lengths, and a variety of fielding errors. Gleeson was able to make amends for dropping Hendricks around the corner at fine leg for 51 by taking the right-hander’s wicket in the next over. However, Buttler’s grounded catch down the leg side off Rossouw – who had just 37 – was far more costly.Tabraiz Shamsi produced a three-wicket spell•Getty Images

That being said, Chris Jordan’s concession of just four runs in the 20th over gave the hosts a spring in their step going into he break. And when Buttler became the first batter of the night to find the stands beyond the longest boundary, and then struck six-six-four off Phehlukwayo, England were in the mix. But Phehlukwayo held his fourth delivery back, resulting in a skier from Buttler taken well by Hendricks running to mid-on, and as four England wickets fell for 51 runs in 6.4 overs, the required rate began to spiral above 12.With 100 needed off the remaining 42 balls, the only reason to sniff an England victory was the presence of Jonny Bairstow and Liam Livingstone at the crease. The ability to smash boundaries at will – as per Bairstow’s eight sixes in his 53-ball 90 on Wednesday – was the only way out of this hole. Unfortunately for England, within 14 balls, the pair had been dismissed – caught at backward point off Rabada and behind off Phehlukwayo, respectively – with 67 left for the tail.The final three wickets fell for just eight, the last of them, Richard Gleeson, off the back of a DRS call seemingly taken on a whim by the fielding side. As with everything else in the match, it went South Africa’s way.Reaping RossouwIt might not have been a century, but Rossouw’s score was a reminder of both his talents and what South Africa have missed out on over the last six years. That he became a Kolpak in his prime, smashing 122 in an ODI against Australia in October 2016, his last appearance for the Proteas before Wednesday’s T20I, was a particularly sore point as he remained visible elsewhere, notable in England for Hampshire and now Somerset.But the prodigal son is now a man, and his innings here typified an underlying sense of maturity to his game. It was particularly evident against those he didn’t target: Reece Topley started well to him and the off spin of Moeen Ali was always going to be tricky for the left-hander to go after. But he struck well against Gleeson, Jordan and particularly Adil Rashid, taking 18 runs off the nine deliveries he faced from the legspinner. But for Stubbs chewing up half of the final over, Rossouw probably would have reached a maiden international T20I hundred. Nevertheless, off the back of a stunning Vitality Blast season for Somerset (623 runs at a strike rate of 192.28), it’s abundantly clear the 32-year-old is making up for lost time.Right-hand, left-hand – overthinking?No sooner had Eoin Morgan posited that it would take a brave man to shunt Bairstow down the order, Buttler did just that. By no means the more ruthless of the two, it was an example of how both teams were persisting with right-hand-left-hand combinations.Related

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It’s nothing new, and in this instance was down to the disparity between the two square boundaries. With the leftie Rossouw batting through the innings from the fourth over, David Miller waved a procession of right-handers through, including Stubbs who came in ahead of the stand-in captain. Similarly, Bairstow was held back for Moeen to enter at No.4 in England’s innings after Dawid Malan had fallen. Then, when Moeen himself was dismissed for an enterprising 28, Sam Curran came in at six ahead of Liam Livingstone.None of them really came off, though the reasons for the promotions were totally justified given the form of Stubbs (72 off 28) and Moeen (52 off 18) from the night before. Not to mention the fact that Bairstow was in by the ninth over anyway, and Rossouw was always going to come in at No.3 to accompany Hendricks. On this occasion, it was a tactic that made a lot of sense but did not produce any tangible reward.Roy …The good news for Jason Roy is, barring injury, he will get the series-decider on Sunday to see if he can improve on the 59 runs off 80 he’s managed across the international T20 summer.The bad news is it looks like it may just be another opportunity to fail. Since a century in the final ODI against Netherlands in Amsterdam, Roy has struggled to get going on home soil. Barring a 41 in the third ODI against India, he has struggled to get the measure of the white Kookaburra ball, occasionally showing flashes of timing amid plenty of mishits and lapses in judgement.The issue that affects Roy more than others is aesthetics: his very nature is to go after attacks, and it is counted as an upside of his character that, even when struggling, he never shies away from a battle. That, however, means in the midst of this kind of run, he looks like a man pushed into the corner swinging haymakers with his eyes closed.

Half-centuries from Jim Allenby and Craig Overton helped Somerset to a total of 312 on the first day at Trent Bridge.

ECB/PA17-May-2015
ScorecardJim Allenby, seen here for Glamorgan last year, made his highest score for his new county Somerset•PA Photos

Half-centuries from Jim Allenby and Craig Overton helped Somerset to a total of 312 on the first day at Trent Bridge. The experienced Allenby, short of runs so far this season, made 64, his highest score since moving from Glamorgan in the winter.His efforts laid the foundation for Overton to replace him at the crease and plunder 55 runs from only 31 balls as Somerset collected three batting points. Nottinghamshire replied with 57 for 2 from the closing 24 overs of the day.Vernon Philander enjoyed his best day with the ball for the home side, returning 4 for 56 against the side that he made a handful of appearances for in 2012. The South African pace bowler seemed to relish the opportunity of playing against former team-mates, under cloudy skies, after Chris Read had won the toss and asked the visitors to bat first.Marcus Trescothick has seldom enjoyed his previous visits to this famous old ground, having failed to register a century in 20 first-class matches. His 33rd innings on the ground was typically brief, castled for 0 by a wonderful swinging delivery from Philander.Somerset also lost Tom Abell during the early exchanges but approached lunch in better order before losing three wickets to the final 11 balls of the opening session. Two of those were taken by Steven Mullaney, including Johannes Myburgh for 49, as the bowler enhanced his reputation as a partnership-breaker.That reputation, real or imaginary, prompted Read to turn to him again in mid-afternoon and again the allrounder delivered, bowling Peter Trego to end a stand of 85 in only 15 overs with Allenby. Overton made the most of some wayward bowling to plunder 11 boundaries in a quickfire 50 before being cleaned up by Harry Gurney.Seven of Somerset’s batsmen were bowled as Luke Wood collected two late scalps. The 19-year-old left-arm quick dumped Lewis Gregory on his backside with a well-directed bouncer before bowling him next ball, then wrapped up the innings by yorking Tim Groenewald.When Nottinghamshire batted they lost the wickets of Mullaney, to Gregory for 19, and Greg Smith, on his county debut, who failed to make the most of his opportunity to step in for the absent Alex Hales by falling lbw to Groenewald for 8. Hales’ weekend dash to join the Mumbai Indians in the Indian Premier League went unrewarded when he was left out of their final qualifying match against Sunrisers Hyderabad.Somerset’s Allenby, who scored 64 was pleased with his side’s performance, saying: “Having got 300-odd, we felt that was over par – especially after we’d had a bit of a wobble in our last few games, so it was nice to get it right today in difficult conditions.”While – on his stand of 85 with Trego – he added: “Peter has been done it for years and I’ve found myself in similar situations so we just used our experience to make sure we kept scoring and we kept trying to capitalise whenever Philander wasn’t bowling because it was a bit tricky out there. We dragged it back and obviously to finish up with Craig Overton getting 60 off just 30 balls finished our innings really well.”While Philander was delighted with his four wickets for the hosts, he said: “It’s obviously started pretty well for me this morning but we’d have liked to roll them out for cheaper than that but bowling them out for 300 on day one, we’d have taken that.”On his swinging delivery to bowl Trescothick out, he added: “It’s always good when you’ve played with guys like that to be able to get them out. Myself and Marcus have a good relationship, so it’s always good to get your mates out.”After lunch we bowled a little bit too short and Treego, Allenby and Overton played nicely but getting full bowling points we’d have taken that. We just need to bat well tomorrow.”

Allrounder Ian Holland is the only uncapped member of Victoria’s 14-man squad to contest the Matador Cup next month

ESPNcricinfo staff22-Sep-2015Allrounder Ian Holland is the only uncapped member of Victoria’s 14-man squad to contest the Matador Cup next month.Holland has been named for a potential state debut after a strong club season last summer in which he came the first person to win the Jack Ryder Medal as the best player in the competition and the John Scholes medal as best player in the final. A batsman and medium-pace bowler, Holland first came to notice in 2012 as the winner of the reality television show.”He is a player that can fill a lot of roles for us,” Victoria’s new coach David Saker said of Holland. “He can bat, bowl and is really strong in the field.”Matthew Wade will captain the Bushrangers and Cameron White will enter the campaign aiming to become the first player to win three consecutive Player of the Tournament awards. In the past two domestic one-day competitions, White has scored 721 runs at 65.54.Victoria squad Matthew Wade (capt), Fawad Ahmed, Scott Boland, Daniel Christian, Aaron Finch, Peter Handscomb, John Hastings, Ian Holland, Jon Holland, Clint McKay, James Pattinson, Rob Quiney, Marcus Stoinis, Cameron White.

Glamorgan have qualified for the quarter-finals of the NatWest T20 Blast with a win over Somerset in Cardiff led by a career-best bowling spell and an innings of 54 from Colin Ingram

ECB Reporters Network22-Jul-2016
ScorecardColin Ingram has had a fine white-ball season•Getty Images

Glamorgan have qualified for the quarter-finals of the NatWest T20 Blast with a win over Somerset in Cardiff A career-best bowling spell and an innings of 54 from Colin Ingram allowed Glamorgan to make the knockout stages with two games still to play.Ingram has played as a white ball specialist this season as a result of an ongoing knee injury and he has made the most of his chances in the side, leading the run-scoring charts for Glamorgan in T20 and 50-over cricket.With victory enough to secure that prized quarter-final spot Glamorgan would have been pleased to win the toss and chase, their preferred method in Cardiff where they are convinced that the ball comes on to the bat better under the lights.An ugly looking pitch but one with decent pace and carry greeted the players but while the runs flowed for Somerset so the wickets fell. Midway, they were 90 for 5, a tendency begun by Mahela Jayawardene, who looked in supreme touch on his way to 16 from 10 balls, but who he fell when he mistimed a cover drive off the bowling of Timm van der Gugten.The most spectacular of those wickets to fall was that of Peter Trego who missed a rocket from Shaun Tait that knocked his stumps out of the ground. It that same over Tait induced an edge from James Hildreth with an outswinger that should have been caught by Mark Wallace but the Glamorgan ‘keeper could not hang on to it.Hildreth made the most of his life, going on to top score for Somerset with 39 from 28 balls. If Glamorgan had taken that chance they could have been chasing around 120; instead they would need 153 to claim victory.The surprise package of the night was Ingram’s bowling as he picked his best T20 figures of 3 for 20 with his occasional leg breaks. He bowled with real guile, with the ball that had Lewis Gregory out stumped particularly impressive. By adding bowling to his stellar batting form he has further cemented his place as Glamorgan’s star man in this competition.While van der Gugten impressed with his bowling, he was out done by his Dutch colleague Paul van Meerkeren who bowled with real pace and was unlucky not to claim more wickets. He did dismiss Mark Wallace who top edged a catch to long leg but there were a number of other chances that fell just short of a fielder. His figures of 1 for 45 did not accurately reflect how well he bowled.Glamorgan lost David Lloyd in the eighth over to bring together Ingram and Aneurin Donald who registered the fastest ever first-class double hundred against Derbyshire this week.Between them they turned what could have been a difficult chase into a stroll as they put together a stand of 76 from 53 balls. Ingram fell before the job was finished but he had done enough for Glamorgan to win by seven wickets with 12 balls to spare.Somerset captain Jim Allenby expressed his frustration at Somerset failing to perform on what he judged to be a very good Cardiff pitch.”It is disappointing and frustrating,” he said. “In all the years I played at Glamorgan and that his the best pitch that I have seen. That was a fantastic cricket pitch, short boundaries, everything that you want as a batsman and we have been bowled at for 150 on it.”So it’s really frustrated as a team and also individually on missing out on getting a big score out there. These things happened but it has happened all too often this season.”